I felt her hand slide down my chest right before her mouth pressed against mine. My lips parted, hoping she’d take the hint. I wanted to taste her, needed to. There were no words to describe how much I’d missed her.
Her tongue slid into my mouth, and I groaned from the sheer pleasure of it. My hands fisted as I fought the urge to reach for her. I had little doubt I could snap the cuffs, but I’d refrain since she obviously wanted me chained to the bed.
She kissed a path down my chest and took one of my nipples in her mouth. If I’d thought my cock was hard before, it was like a steel post now. My hips lifted as my cock sought her warmth. Della reached down and gripped me with her small, soft hand, stroking me firmly.
All too soon, she let go. I heard the sound of a jar opening and braced myself for the feather duster, but I had no idea where she’d use it. It brushed gently along the length of my cock, making me hiss in a breath, and I strained against the handcuffs. There was only one possible outcome -- her mouth on my cock. When her tongue stroked the length of me, I nearly came. She lapped up the honey-flavored dust before fitting her lips around me and sliding down my shaft. The silky heat of her mouth was nearly my undoing. The feel of her tongue curling around me as her head bobbed up and down made me want to rip free of the restraints, flip her over and bury myself inside of her hot, wet pussy.
“Sweet Lucifer! Della, if you don’t stop, I’m going to come and I’d much rather be inside of you when that happens.”
She released me and I felt her crawl up my body, her thighs encasing my hips. I could feel her pussy brush against the sensitive head of my cock and I surged upward, trying to enter her. The little minx gave a throaty laugh and lifted herself out of the way, denying me. She brushed against me again, teasing me.
“Della, sweet, if you don’t give me what I want, what I need, this isn’t going to end the way you want.”
She tweaked my nipple. “So impatient.”
“Because you drive me to distraction.”
She wrapped a hand around my hard shaft and slowly lowered herself. “Is this what you wanted?”
“Yes, oh yes. Nothing feels as wonderful as being inside of you.”
She leaned down and kissed me. “You better hold on for the ride of your life then.”
My hands fisted again as I contemplated breaking the cuffs and wrapping my arms around her soft body. As her body rose and lowered over my cock, time and again, I felt my balls draw up. I knew there was no way I was going to last, not after going several days without her. Her pace quickened, her strokes became harder. I tried to hold back, wanted her to find her pleasure first, but it was going to be damn close.
I heard her panting softly. Her fingers curled into my chest as her moves became frantic. As her pussy began fluttering around my cock, she cried out, the sound of her passion the sweetest thing I’d ever heard. I was unable to hold back another moment and let go, coming deep inside of her.
One of these days, we’d have to discuss children. I made sure I kept myself in check well enough not to get her pregnant, but the idea was rather appealing. The thought of her belly rounding with my child made me smile.
Having had enough, I snapped the cuffs and ripped the blindfold off. Gazing into her eyes, I pulled her down for a kiss. Our lips met, our tongues tangled, and I knew that I never wanted to kiss another woman for the rest of my existence. I just had to convince her to move to hell permanently. She’d already referred to my quarters as her home once, so that was promising. A talk was definitely in order.
Chapter Five
After we’d showered and made love once more, I went topside to grab us something to eat. As we munched on cheeseburgers and French fries, I contemplated my next move. I could just ask her outright to move in with me, but I wasn’t sure how she would react. I didn’t want her to think this was something casual. I wanted her to understand this was a lifetime commitment, a lifetime that would last forever.
I figured she would appreciate the direct approach, but first she needed to know how I felt. I’d never expressed my feelings before so it was a daunting experience. How did one go about baring their soul to another? Well, if I had one. As a demon, I wasn’t entirely sure I had a soul.
“Della, there’s something I need to tell you, and… Well, I don’t know what to say.”
She took my hand. “Whatever it is, I’ll listen and keep an open mind.”
“I’ve never done this before.”
“Done what?”
“What’s that phrase you humans like to use? Spill my guts?”
She smiled. “You can tell me anything, Aires.”
“Yes, well… the thing is, ever since our first kiss, I’ve had a hard time getting you off my mind. Actually, I’m not sure I wanted to. Just the thought of that kiss made me feel warm inside. And then we kissed again. Since then, we’ve shared so much more with one another. I think it was inevitable, these feelings that I’m having.”
She scooted closer. “What feelings?”
“I might as well just say it,” I muttered. “I love you, Della. My life wasn’t complete until that kiss. It showed me what I’d been missing all my life. And now, having gotten to know you better, I know that I don’t want to spend another moment without you.”
“What are you saying?” she asked softly.
“I’m saying that I want you to move in with me. I want to spend the rest of my life with you.”
“You mean the rest of mine. I’ll get old and die.”
I shook my head. “Not if you move down here. You’ll age the same as me.”
“I love you, too, Aires, and there’s nothing I can think that I’d like more than to be with you always.”
“I can think of one thing.” I pressed my lips to hers. “How do you feel about children?”
She looked surprised. “We can have children?”
“All you have to do is tell me when you’re ready. Tinta demons can have children whenever they choose. It’s a matter of control.”
“I think I’d like a little more time of it just being the two of us, if that’s okay?”
“Whatever you want, Della. We have an eternity.”
She looked around my small quarters. “I don’t think my things will fit in here, though.”
“That’s an easy fix. When a Tinta demon finds his mate, Lucifer gives him a small apartment. There’s also a gathering room where you can meet with the other mates and have movie nights and such.”
“That sounds nice. But what becomes of you? Will you still be my guardian, or will you be assigned to someone else?” She frowned. “I’m not sure I like the idea of you watching over another woman.”
“So far, none of the Tinta demons have been reassigned. Perhaps our job is merely to watch over our mates and children.”
“Merely?” She arched a brow.
“All right, poor choice of words. What I meant was that we wouldn’t be assigned any other duties. At least, it doesn’t seem that way so far.”
“How do you go about notifying Lucifer of your newly mated status? Or is he just all knowing?”
I smiled. “He’s all knowing. I’m sure he’ll let me know when the new apartment is ready. I know the others notified him of their mated status, but I don’t think I’ll need to. It wouldn’t surprise me if he’s heard of Rickter’s interest though. Hopefully that doesn’t change anything.”
“Speaking of Rickter, I don’t believe we’ll see him again.”
I looked at her in curiosity. “I have to admit, I wondered how you’d gotten him to bring you here. He seemed intent on keeping you last I saw him.”
“I was miserable without you. Don’t get me wrong, he was very nice to me, but he wasn’t you. All I wanted was to come home to you.”
“And he let you, just like that?”
“He said he had my well-being in mind when he took me and he couldn’t, in good conscience, keep me if I wanted to be elsewhere. He said it was obvious that I had deep feelings for you and he wouldn
’t come between us.”
If our roles had been reversed, would I have been as generous? Doubtful. I was selfish and wanted her to myself.
* * *
A few days later, Della was back in her apartment, packing her belongings. At least, those things she wished to bring with her. I’d offered to help, but she’d insisted she wanted to go through her things alone. I thought two days was plenty of time for me to be without her, though, and planned to surprise her. Stopping at a little bakery I knew she liked, I picked up some of her favorite scones before going to her apartment. I blinked myself inside and walked down the hall toward her bedroom.
What I saw stopped me in my tracks. The smile I’d worn all morning slipped from my face. I couldn’t quite believe my eyes. My first instinct was to turn around and leave before I was spotted, to go home and lick my wounds, but I forced myself to stay where I was. I wouldn’t take the coward’s way out, no matter how tempting it might be.
“What’s going on?” I asked in a voice that was a lot calmer than I felt.
Rickter pulled away from the kiss he’d just shared with Della and smirked at me. “What’s it look like?”
I looked at Della, trying to understand, and fighting the urge to pound Rickter into a pile of dust. Just the other day, she’d told me that she loved me, that she wanted to live with me. Had something happened in the past two days to make her change her mind? Had I done something?
What I really wanted to know was whether or not Rickter been here the whole time. Maybe I shouldn’t have allowed her to pack alone. She’d asked for some space to get her affairs in order but obviously that was a mistake. One I was paying for now.
“Della?”
“It isn’t what you think, Aires.”
I looked between the two of them, noting that she was still in Rickter’s embrace and didn’t seem to be extracting herself anytime soon. Shouldn’t she have pulled away by now? If it wasn’t what I thought, why hadn’t she come to me, pushed him aside? It was obvious that something profound had happened while I was in hell, giving her the space she’d asked for. I was feeling rather stupid now.
I looked at her face once more. She looked stricken, but was it from being found out or was it from the kiss itself? I wish she’d say something, do something. Prove to me that what I was seeing wasn’t as it seemed. Merely saying the words didn’t make it so.
I showed her the bakery box and tossed it on her dresser. “I brought you your favorite pastry.”
She finally pulled away from Rickter and approached me, a tentative smile on her face. “Thank you.”
“I guess I should’ve used the door and knocked.”
“Aires…”
She stopped and didn’t seem to know what to say, and that said plenty. She wouldn’t have such a hard time unless she had something to hide. I loved her, had poured my heart out to her, offered her a place by my side for all of eternity, and she’d turned around and thrown it in my face. How could she kiss Rickter?
“It isn’t what you think,” she said.
Regardless of what she said, I knew what my eyes had seen. And I’d seen her being nice and cozy with Rickter, willingly at that. There wasn’t a way for her to explain that away.
I glanced around at the half-packed boxes. “I’ll leave you to unpack.”
“Unpack.” She frowned. “But I thought --”
“It’s over, Della. Whatever we had, it’s obvious that it’s gone.”
Rickter looked more than a little pleased with my news. I tried to ignore the stricken look in Della’s eyes as I blinked myself back to hell. The sooner I got back to my regular schedule, the better. I needed to exorcise Della from my life, as much as possible. Except, my regular schedule consisted of lots of visits to the pleasure chamber, and I didn’t even want to think about being with another woman.
No, what I really wanted was to drink the pain away. There was a bar in hell that I’d frequented a few times and figured that was the best place for me now. Liquor on Earth was no different than drinking water, but alcohol in hell was another matter. Anything created in my domain had the ability to affect me.
Instead of returning home, I went straight to the bar, climbing onto the nearest barstool. I motioned to the bartender, a damned soul someone had collected at some point, and ordered a shot of whiskey. When he pulled the bottle back, I snatched it from his hand and placed it in front of me. One shot wasn’t going to do it. As a matter of fact, seven shots later, I still wasn’t feeling any better. The effects of the alcohol were just starting to kick in, but not enough for me to call myself drunk. I had a feeling that would require the whole bottle of whiskey, perhaps two bottles.
To change things up a bit, I switched to tequila. After that came kamikazes and atomic fireballs. I had no idea how long I sat at the bar, but after a while, I was listing to the side.
A hand gripped my upper arm and I looked up at Bramfier. “Come along, my friend. I think you’ve had enough,” he said, his eyes kind and understanding.
I slid off the stool and wobbled for a moment. I couldn’t even focus well enough to blink myself home, but thankfully Bramfier had it covered. When we arrived at my place, he sat me on the edge of the bed. Hands on his hips, he watched me with narrowed eyes. “You’re a mess.”
I snorted.
“No woman is worth this, Aires.”
My gaze jerked to his, and I immediately regretted the hasty action as the room spun. “What do you know of it?”
“Lucifer sent me to find you. You know that he knows everything that goes on. He said Della had broken your heart, and you were at the bar trying to drown your sorrows.”
“Is there anyone who doesn’t know?”
“I haven’t told anyone, if that’s what you mean. I doubt Lucifer has, either.”
I nodded and groaned, holding my head. If everything would quit spinning, maybe I wouldn’t feel like I was going to hurl at any moment. I couldn’t remember a time I’d had so much to drink. Beer, or ale back in the day, yes. But shots, never.
“I think you need to sleep it off,” Bramfier said. “Tomorrow things will look different.”
“I caught her kissing another demon. How are things going to look different? She betrayed me.”
“Maybe. Maybe not. Did you give her time to explain?”
“What’s to explain?”
Bramfier shook his head. “I think you’re making a mistake if you don’t hear her out, especially if you’re this messed up over the thought of never being with her again. How are you going to handle that, anyway? She’s still your charge.”
“I’ll ask Lucifer to transfer her to another Tinta. I’ll go see him tomorrow.”
Bramfier sighed. “For your sake, I hope things work out. A lifetime of regret doesn’t sound like much fun, especially when your life lasts forever.”
Chapter Six
Working through a hangover the next morning, or rather afternoon since I didn’t roll out of bed until at least noon, I went to Lucifer’s office in hopes of seeing him. One didn’t just walk in and see the big man, but if I were lucky, he’d have an open appointment I could take.
I approached Procell, the demon manning the desk outside of Lucifer’s office. “Does he have any free time this afternoon?” I asked.
Procell studied the appointment book in front of him. “It seems that he can see you now, if you wish.”
“That would be great, Procell. Thank you.”
The demon nodded and motioned for me to enter Lucifer’s office. I stepped inside the opulent space and waited near the master’s desk. I wasn’t about to sit down without being invited to do so.
Lucifer looked up from some paperwork on his desk. “Aires. I was going to pay you a visit within the hour. It seems you’ve saved me a trip.”
Well, that didn’t sound good. “Have I done something wrong, my lord?”
Lucifer steepled his fingers. “Would you care to explain to me why you left your mate with another demon? Not once, but twice?
”
“She’s not my mate. I thought she was, but… it seems she’s changed her mind about me.”
“Why do you think she’s changed her mind?”
“I found her in Rickter’s arms, kissing him. She couldn’t have given me a clearer message if she’d handwritten a note.”
Lucifer tilted his head. “And you think she wanted the kiss? That she was willing?”
“She didn’t exactly pull away. And when the kiss ended, she still stayed in his arms. What else was I supposed to think? If she’d struggled, if she’d come to me the moment she knew I was there, maybe I would’ve listened. It would’ve shown me that she wasn’t a willing participant and that she still cared.”
Something shifted in the corner of the room and Della stepped forward, surprising me. There were dark smudges under her eyes and they were red-rimmed, as if she’d been crying. She looked pale and her hands twisted in front of her, showing her agitation. How long had she been there? Had Lucifer known I was coming and brought her here for a specific reason?
“It wasn’t what you thought, Aires,” she said softly. “I swear, I didn’t betray you. I would never do that.”
“Then what was it, Della? You slipped and accidentally fell on his lips?”
“He came by offering to help me pack, and then we started talking. He tried to win me over one last time, but I told him my heart belonged to you.”
“I still don’t see where the kiss comes into things.”
“Before I knew what he was doing, he pulled me into his arms and kissed me. I was so stunned that I didn’t move, I didn’t know what to do. And then you appeared. The look on your face made me freeze in place. I could tell that your heart was breaking and I wanted to explain things, to tell you that the kiss meant nothing, but you didn’t give me a chance to do that. You just disappeared.”
“You really expect me to believe that’s what happened? It didn’t look that innocent from where I was standing. You could’ve moved away from him, Della. Instead, you just stood there.” My jaw tensed. “Besides, you forget, Rickter has wanted you from the beginning. He’s done everything to try and win you. Why would he throw it all away on a dumb move like that? Are you telling me everything was a lie, and he was playing both of us?”
Guardian Demons Box Set Page 16
